In a proceeding where a development company and property owners sought to develop a subdivision of single-family homes in two phases (I and II), the applicant appealed the denial of a preliminary plat for Phase I and a conditional acceptance … Continue reading →

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has a recipe for helping the housing market: Modify more loans and speed up foreclosures to get rid of a glut of distressed properties clogging the system. Still, even that approach may be slow going, with … Continue reading →

“Realtors and mortgage loan officers nationwide are driving mid-to-high end organic, short and distressed sales on the fear that buyers will be unable to qualify for loans once the QRM (Qualified Residential Mortgage) rules are in place requiring 20 percent … Continue reading →

The head of global securitized products research at Citi Global Markets said that home equity held by American households is down from 60% to 39%. Mary Kane, speaking at an American Securitization Forum session about consumer trends and the state of the housing market, … Continue reading →

More lawmakers in the House of Representatives signed a second letter Friday requesting federal regulators to lower the 20% down payment on the qualified residential mortgage. More than 150 lawmakers signed the original letter sent to regulators in May. However, … Continue reading →

Unemployment benefit applications fell to a seasonally adjusted 414,000,the Labor Department said on Thursday. It was the second drop in three weeks and a positive sign that layoffs are slowing. Still, applications have been above 400,000 for 10 consecutive weeks, evidence … Continue reading →

The subject line of one email HousingWire received Tuesday from the Toronto-based firm read: “US Housing Market Monthly – Worse than the Great Depression.” Coverage on CNBC, later aggregated by the Drudge Report, stated “the housing crisis that began in … Continue reading →